Systems and methods for generating an accounting document

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are provided for generating an accounting document. In one implementation, a computer-implemented method is provided. A message is received that includes operational data. An accounting notification is generated that includes the operational data using a first business object. The accounting notification is processed and the accounting document is generated using a second business object. The accounting document includes a number of posting lines corresponding to the operational data. The accounting document is processed and a set of third business objects is assigned to each posting line. The set of third business objects includes at least one general ledger account business object and a plurality of sub-ledger account business objects. One or more data processing tasks are delegated to the one of the third business objects that are assigned to the given posting line.

BACKGROUND

I. Technical Field

The present invention generally relates to the field of data processing.More particularly, the invention relates to computerized systems andmethods for generating an accounting document.

II. Background Information

Business object technology and business object programming are based onthe concept of business objects. Real world objects, such as an anemployee or a sales order, are modeled as business objects in businessapplication systems, such as the SAP R/3 system. Business objectsencapsulate data and business processes, thus hiding the details of thestructure and implementation of the underlying data.

To achieve this encapsulation, the business objects are constructed asentities with multiple layers. At the core of a business object is akernel, which may represent the object's inherent data. A second layer,called an integrity layer, may represent the business logic of theobject. The integrity layer may include business rules and constraintsthat apply to the business object. A third layer, called an interfacelayer, may describe the implementation and structure of the businessobject, and defines the object's interface to the outside world. Afourth and outermost layer of a business object is called an accesslayer, which may define the technologies that can be used to obtainexternal access to the object's data, such as COM/DCOM (Component ObjectModel/Distributed Component Object Model).

The interface layer may separate a business object's data and theapplications and technologies that can be used to access it. To theoutside, business objects may reveal only their interface, which mayinclude a set of clearly defined methods. Applications may only accessthe business object data by the object's methods. Further, anapplication program that accesses a business object and its data onlyneeds the information required to execute the methods. Therefore, anapplication programmer can work with a business object and invoke itsmethods without having to know or consider the object's underlyingimplementation details.

A set of methods that is associated with a business object may representthe object's behavior. When a method is executed on a business object,the method may change the object's internal state (e.g., the object'sdata). Business object types and methods are typically identified anddescribed in a repository, such as a SAP Business Object Repository(BOR) or an Enterprise Service Repository (ESR).

Business objects are also used in accounting systems. In particular, animportant task of accounting is recording information. Accountingprocedures value business transactions on a monetary basis and updatethem, providing the information for audit purposes, for example. Sincedifferent kinds of information are recorded for different businesstransactions, accounting documents include different accounting documentitems and have varied structures. Collections of accounting documentitems having the same structure are called ledgers.

A ledger can have an additional structure that enables a differentiationbetween a general ledger and different sub-ledgers. The general ledgercontains all information that is the same for all business transactions.The sub-ledgers supplement the general ledger in accordance withdifferent kinds of business transactions and information.

Using general ledgers and sub-ledgers requires cosistency between theinformation across the general ledgers and sub-ledgers. Data consistencycan be provided by avoiding data redundancies and can be accomplished bydistributing the accounting document items over general ledgers andsub-ledgers. Thus, several ledgers have to be read in order tocompletely reconstruct a business transaction in accounting.

Due to internationalization, many companies have to prepare and log thesame business transaction in accordance with different accountingprinciples in order to meet the legal reporting requirements governed byvarious jurisdictions. Accordingly, there is a need for automatic andconsistent creation of accounting documents in accordance with differentaccounting principles.

SUMMARY

Consistent with the present invention, a data processing systemgenerates an accounting document. The data processing system includesmeans for receiving operational data of a business transaction, a firstbusiness object for providing an accounting notification in response toreceipt of the operational data, an accounting notification carrying theoperational data, and a second business object for providing theaccounting document in response to the accounting notification. Theaccounting document includes a number of posting lines corresponding tothe operational data, a processing component for processing theaccounting notification and the accounting document, and a set of thirdbusiness objects. The set of third business objects includes at leastone general ledger account business object and a plurality of sub-ledgeraccount business objects. The processing component processes theaccounting notification and the accounting document in a predefinedsequence of steps, assigns one of the third business objects to eachposting line of the accounting document, and delegates one or more dataprocessing tasks to be performed for a given posting line to the one ofthe third business objects that is assigned to that posting line.

Consistent with the present invention, operational data is received froma plurality of transactional data processing systems. For example, theoperational data is received in an extended mark-up language format,such as XML. An XML document containing the operational data can bereceived from one of the transactional data processing systems as an XImessage using, for example, the SAP Exchange Infrastructure.

Consistent with the present invention, the accounting notification hasthe form of at least a rudimentary posting specification thatcorresponds to the operational data that has been pre-processed in orderto generate the accounting notification. The posting specification atleast partly specifies the structure and/or content of the accountingdocument to be generated.

Consistent with the present invention, the first business objectincludes a first semantic key referencing a source of the operationaldata and a type specification for indicating a type of the operationaldata, such as incoming invoice, outgoing invoice, and salary payment.The type indication and/or the first semantic key can be used forcontrolling the step by step processing of the accounting notificationand/or of the accounting document as the type and/or the source of theoperational data may determine or influence the business logic to beapplied for further processing.

Consistent with the present invention, the second business objectincludes a second semantic key comprising a company name to which theaccounting document belongs, fiscal year, set of books, and/oraccounting document number.

Consistent with the present invention, the accounting notification isgenerated by the processing component by using the received operationaldata and adding some data via several processing steps.

Consistent with the present invention, first and second data containersare generated for processing the accounting notification and theaccounting document data during execution of the respective predefinedsequences of processing steps.

Consistent with the present invention, one or more data processing tasksrelated to the valuation of a posting item are delegated to one or moreof the third business objects.

Consistent with the present invention, each posting item is processedindividually using its assigned third business object.

Consistent with the present invention, a method for generating anaccounting document includes receiving a message carrying operationaldata, generating an accounting notification carrying the operationaldata using a first business object, and generating the accountingdocument using a second business object. The accounting documentincludes a number of posting lines corresponding to the operationaldata. The method further includes processing the accounting document ina predefined sequence of steps and assigning one of a set of thirdbusiness objects to each posting line. The set of third business objectsincludes at least one general ledger account business object and aplurality of sub-ledger account business objects. One or more dataprocessing tasks to be performed are delegated for a given posting lineto the one of the third business objects which is assigned to thatposting line.

It is to be noted that the term “operational data” as used herein mayrelate to any kind of business transaction. “Operational data” isdirectly related to the execution of a business transaction, whereassecondary processing on the operational data, such as valuations,account determination, etc., is performed by embodiments of theaccounting system of the invention.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory onlyand are not restrictive of the invention or embodiments thereof, asclaimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this disclosure, illustrate various embodiments and aspects ofthe present invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a data processing system, consistent withan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exemplary structure of an accounting notification,consistent with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an exemplary structure of an accounting document, consistentwith an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary chart showing steps performed on the accountingnotification, consistent with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary chart showing steps performed on the accountingdocument, consistent with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a method, consistent with an embodiment of thepresent invention; and

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating storage of the accountingdocument data in a single database, consistent with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawingsand the following description to refer to the same or similar parts.While several exemplary embodiments and features of the invention aredescribed herein, modifications, adaptations and other implementationsare possible, without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention. For example, substitutions, additions or modifications may bemade to the components illustrated in the drawings, and the exemplarymethods described herein may be modified by substituting, reordering, oradding steps to the disclosed methods. Accordingly, the followingdetailed description does not limit the invention. Instead, the properscope of the invention is defined by the appended claims.

Systems and methods consistent with the present invention provide aninbound interface for business processes. For example, the SAP exchangeinfrastructure can be used for implementation of such a layer ofinterfaces such that operational data is sent from operational systemcomponents to an accounting system by means of XI messages.

FIG. 1 shows an accounting system 100, consistent with an embodiment ofthe present invention. Accounting system 100 is coupled to a number ofoperational systems 102 that are used for performance of variousoperational tasks, such as performing payments, receiving payments,receiving goods, etc. Operational systems 102 and accounting system 100are coupled by a network 104, such as a computer network (e.g., anintranet or the Internet). Operational systems 102 and accounting system100 may implement the SAP exchange infrastructure, for example.

Accounting system 100 may include a first business object (i.e., theaccounting notification business object 106). Business object 106 mayrepresent the financial accounting view of, for example, a logisticalbusiness transaction and provides services for processing XI messages inaccounting. This enables a uniform accounting view of the logistical XImessages so that all logistical messages can be processed according to acommon procedure.

Further, accounting system 100 may include a second business object(i.e., an accounting document business object 108). Business object 108may be designed to represent business transactions in financialaccounting for the purposes of reporting such business transactions. Aninstance of business object 108 (i.e., an accounting document) is ajoint document for a general ledger account business object 112 andsub-ledger account business objects 114 of accounting system 100.Therefore, the accounting document contains information relevant for therespective sub-ledgers.

Accounting system 100 may include a processing component 116 forprocessing of accounting notification data and accounting document data.Processing of the accounting notification data and the accountingdocument data is performed in respective predefined sequences ofprocessing steps that are independent from the operational data. One ormore of the data processing tasks that is to be executed for performinga given processing step of sequences 142 and/or 144 may or may not bedelegated by processing component 116 to one of the business objects ofthe accounting system, such as the business object 112, or one of thebusiness objects 114. Configuration of the processing steps and thedelegation of such data processing tasks is specified in storage 119 andstorage 120 of accounting system 100, respectively.

For example, a configuration stored in storage 120 may comprise a numberof conditions to be applied on the operational data and/or respectiveposting items. If a condition is fulfilled, a respective business objectthat is assigned to the condition is identified and assigned to therespective posting line.

Processing component 116 can be implemented by at least onemicroprocessor and executes program instructions 138 and programinstructions 140. Program instructions 138 may implement a firstsequence 142 of generic processing steps that are independent from theoperational data. Sequence 142 may process accounting notification data.Similarly, program instructions 140 may implement a second sequence 144of generic processing steps for processing the accounting document data.

Storage 119 holds configuration data for configuration of sequence 142,such as specifying processing steps of sequence 142 and whether a givenprocessing step delegates to one of the business objects of accountingsystem 100 for execution of the respective processing step. Storage 119may also hold predefined conditions for determining business objects forthe delegations. Selection of one of the business objects to which atleast a part of that given processing step is delegated may bedetermined by applying a predefined condition to the operational data ordata that has been derived from the operational data. Similary, storage120 may specify the configuration of sequence 144.

Accounting system 100 may include a main memory 136 for for temporarystorage of data during run time, especially for storing a data container118 and a data container 122. Data container 118 may be created byprogram instructions 138 in response to receipt of XI message 124 byaccounting system 100. The structure of data container 118 may bedetermined by accounting notification business object 106. Datacontainer 118 may contain the operational data received with XI message124 and additional data that is derived from the operational data byexecution of sequence 142.

Program instructions 138 may contain read instructions for reading dataitems from the accounting notification data that is held in datacontainer 118 for execution of a given processing step of sequence 142.Further, program instructions 138 may comprise write instructions forwriting a result of the execution of a given processing step of sequence142 to data container 118 for completion of the accounting notificationdata. Similarly, processing component 116 may generate a data container122 that contains the accounting document data (i.e., the data of theaccounting document) that is to be generated. Data container 122 may beused during sequence 144. In addition, the accounting notification datastored in data container 118 is also used by rogram instructions 140 forperformance of sequence 144.

In other words, program instructions 140 may perform one or more readaccess operations for reading accounting notification data from datacontainer 118 and a number of read/write access operations on datacontainer 122 for filling data container 122 with the resultantaccounting document data. It is to be noted that data container 118 isinitially filled with the operational data received as part of the XImessage 124 whereas data container 122 is initially empty. The structureof data container 122 is determined by accounting document businessobject 108.

Accounting system 100 is designed to receive XI messages fromoperational systems 102, such as XI message 124, that containsoperational data. Communication between operational systems 102 andaccounting system 100 is performed by asynchronous messages. This meansthat a suitable inbound process agent of the exchange infrastructureconverts the message from the specific XI message format into theuniversal format of accounting notification 118. The inbound processagent can call a create method of the nodes of business object 106 forcreating accounting notification 118.

The operational data that has been received and transferred into datacontainer 118 needs to be validated and further operational informationmay have to be added. The data to be added can be, for example, purchaseorder prices and delivery costs that are read from the purchase order.This is performed by execution of sequence 142. The accountingnotification data is stored in data container 118 in the form of atleast a rudimentary posting specification. These preparatory processingsteps are carried out by processing component 116 by execution ofprogram instructions 138.

After creation of the accounting notification data has been completed,the respective accounting document or a plurality of such accountingdocuments are created. This process is executed by processing component116 by means of predefined sequence 144. At least some of the accountingnotification data may be transferred to data container 122.

The data that is contained in data container 122 is structured inaccordance with general ledger business object 112 and sub-ledgerbusiness objects 114. The structure may include a header and a number ofposting lines that relate to various posting items. Further processingof the data contained in data container 122 for completion of theaccounting document data is performed in sequence 144 of steps that maybe identical for all business transactions. Each step of fixed sequence142 and/or 144 may or may not involve delegation of one or more dataprocessing tasks to a specialist business object. Delegation may use anidentical fixed sequence of steps irrespective of the kinds of businesstransaction as processing logic that is not the same for all businesstransactions is accessed by delegation to a suitable business object.Processing component 116 implements the paradigm “sequence of stepsleads” in contrast to “business transaction type leads.” A dynamicsemantic model implemented by accounting system 100 facilitates tracingas the data processing steps are always carried out in a fixed sequenceas specified in storage 120.

In operation, accounting system 100 receives XI message 124 containingoperational data from one of operational systems 102 via network 104. Inresponse, data container 118 is generated using business object 106 andthe operational data. In response to the creation of data container 118,processing component 116 executes sequence 142 and generates datacontainer 122 using the accounting notification data to generate aheader and posting lines for the accounting document being processed.

One or more conditions may be applied to the data contained in datacontainer 122. Conditions may be applied to the posting lines or postingitems in order to assign a business object to at least some or eachposting line. For example, a business object that is assigned to aposting item provides the business logic that is required for valuationof the operational data that relates to the posting item. Processing ofthe data of data container 122 is performed by processing component 116in sequence 144 where each processing step may or may not involvedelegation.

Accounting notification business object 106, accounting documentbusiness object 108, general ledger business object 112, sub-ledgerbusiness objects 114, data container 119, and configuration data storedin storage 120 may contain database tables for persistent storage of therespective data.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary structure of data container 118, consistentwith an embodiment of the present invention. Data container 118 containsall accounting relevant information for a business transaction and has athree-level hierarchical structure that is composed of the followingelements: an accounting notification node 126 that represents thedocument header; a semantic key of the accounting notification node is areference to the source document, such as a reference to the businesstransaction; and/or the operational system that provided the operationaldata.

Node 128 “Business Transaction Document Reference” is on the secondlevel of the hierarchy. Node 128 contains information regarding thereasons for a business transaction (e.g., a reference to the item of thebusiness transaction document to which the current business transactionrefers). For example, a reference to a purchase order item for which amovement of goods is recorded can be given in node 128. Further, aBusiness Transaction Document Reference may be assigned to theaccounting notification itself or to an item group 130.

A node 132 “coding block’ is also on the second level of hierarchy. Thisnode states for whom the business transaction was triggered. A “codingblock” can be assigned to the document header or an item group. Forexample, node 132 identifies a production order for which a confirmationis received.

Node 134 on the third level of hierarchy forms, from a logistical view,a useful subdivision of the business transaction. In addition to thereference to the item of the source document to which the node refers,the node may contain characteristics that are relevant for all businesstransactions. There may also be supplementary nodes that containbusiness transaction-specific logistical information. For example, formovements of materials there is the supplementary node “material.” Forevery instance of a node, a supplementary node can be instantiated.Further, an “item group” groups all nodes that can be separated from theothers and represent a complete sub-transaction.

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary structure of business object 108, consistentwith an embodiment of the present invention. Business object 108encompasses the following aspects: a fixed asset; a material ledgeraccount; a production ledger account; a purchase ledger account; a salesledger account; a ARP ledger account; a tax ledger account; a cashledger account; an overhead cost ledger account; and other direct costledger account.

The structure of these business objects follows a basic pattern (i.e., abusiness object node for line items and, if necessary, for totals andbalances). The root node of a subledger or the general ledger containsthe instances for which data are stored in the line item relating to thetotal and/or balance node. The root instance of a subledger essentiallyspecifies for which business object of the operational or transactionalsystem it collects the accounting data. The root instance of the generalledger essentially specifies for which general ledger account itcollects the accounting data.

FIG. 4 shows an example of sequence 142 containing steps 1 to 4 that areperformed for processing the accounting notification data by processingcomponent 116. Steps 1 to 3 relate to various checks and adding ofcertain data to the operational data. For execution of steps 1 to 3. atleast some of the respective processing steps are delegated toappropriate business objects. Step 4 relates to the determination of theset of books is not delegated.

FIG. 5 shows a sequence of steps that are performed consecutively on thedata contained in data container 122 for completing the accountingdocument data, consistent with an embodiment of the present invention.The table given in FIG. 5 indicates which ones of the steps involvedelegation to a business object.

FIG. 6 shows a flowchart, consistent with an embodiement of the presentinvention. In step 200, a message with operational data is received bythe accounting system. In response, an instance of the accountingnotification business object is created by generating a data containerfor holding the accounting notification data during runtime (step 202).That first data container is processed in step 204 by execution of afirst sequence of predefined processing steps. After the sequence ofpredefined processing steps has been executed, processing of theaccounting notification data is completed (step 205).

In step 206, a second data container is created that is initially empty.The second data container stores the accounting document data duringruntime. The second data container is used to perform accountingdocument processing (step 208) in accordance with sequence 144.Execution of step 208 may encompass assignment of business objects tothe posting lines of the accounting document data that is being storedby the second data container. The assignment is performed usingpredefined criteria that are stored in the configuration of theaccounting system.

The sequence of processing steps that execute step 208 may or may not beperformed using delegation to one of the business objects. For example,the posting lines are processed in sequential order. For processing of agiven posting line one or more of the respective data processing tasks,a sequence may be delegated to the business object that is assigned tothe posting line being processed. In step 210, processing of theaccounting document data is completed.

It is to be noted that more than one accounting document can begenerated in response to receipt of the operational data. For example,accounting for the operational data may need to be performed inaccordance with several accounting rules or standards, depending on theregulatory requirements. In this instance, the above described sequenceor parts of the above described sequence of steps 202 to 210 may need tobe performed several times using these different accounting rules orstandards for producing of respective accounting documents.

FIG. 7 shows accounting system 100, consistent with an embodiment of thepresent invention. Accounting system 100 may include a database 146 forstoring data belonging to accounting document business object, line itemof general ledger business object, and line item of subledger businessobjects. The accounting notification data and accounting document datais stored in atabase 146 without redundancy. In other words, theaccounting notification data and accounting document data is stored onlyonce in database 146 without a need for storing multiple copies of thesame data. Database 146 can be used by instances of accountingnotification business object 108, general ledger account business object112. and sub-ledger business object 114 for filling the respective datastructures with actual data.

The foregoing description has been presented for purposes ofillustration. It is not exhaustive and does not limit the invention tothe precise forms or embodiments disclosed. Modifications andadaptations of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in theart from consideration of the specification and practice of thedisclosed embodiments of the invention. For example, the describedimplementations include software, but systems and methods consistentwith the present invention may be implemented as a combination ofhardware and software or in hardware alone. Examples of hardware includecomputing or processing systems, including personal computers, servers,laptops, mainframes, micro-processors and the like. Additionally,although aspects of the invention are described for being stored inmemory, one skilled in the art will appreciate that these aspects canalso be stored on other types of computer-readable media, such assecondary storage devices, for example, hard disks, floppy disks, orCD-ROM, the Internet or other propagation medium, or other forms of RAMor ROM.

Computer programs based on the written description and methods of thisinvention are within the skill of an experienced developer. The variousprograms or program modules can be created using any of the techniquesknown to one skilled in the art or can be designed in connection withexisting software. For example, program sections or program modules canbe designed in or by means of Java, C++, HTML, XML, or HTML withincluded Java applets or in SAP R/3 or ABAP. One or more of suchsoftware sections or modules can be integrated into a computer system orexisting e-mail or browser software.

Moreover, while illustrative embodiments of the invention have beendescribed herein, the scope of the invention includes any and allembodiments having equivalent elements, modifications, omissions,combinations (e.g., of aspects across various embodiments), adaptationsand/or alterations as would be appreciated by those in the art based onthe present disclosure. The limitations in the claims are to beinterpreted broadly based on the language employed in the claims and notlimited to examples described in the present specification or during theprosecution of the application, which examples are to be construed asnon-exclusive. Further, the steps of the disclosed methods may bemodified in any manner, including by reordering steps and/or insertingor deleting steps, without departing from the principles of theinvention. It is intended, therefore, that the specification andexamples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spiritof the invention being indicated by the following claims and their fullscope of equivalents.

1. A data processing system for generating an accounting document, thesystem comprising: means for receiving operational data; a firstbusiness object that provides an accounting notification in response toreceipt of the operational data, wherein the accounting notificationincludes the operational data; a second business object that provides anaccounting document in response to the accounting notification, whereinthe accounting document includes a plurality of posting linescorresponding to the operational data; a processing component forprocessing the accounting notification and the accounting document; anda set of third business objects that include at least one general ledgeraccount business object and a plurality of sub-ledger account businessobjects, wherein the processing component processes the accountingnotification and the accounting document, assigns one of the thirdbusiness objects to each posting line of the accounting document, anddelegates one or more data processing tasks to be performed for a givenposting line to the one of the third business objects that is assignedto the given posting line.
 2. The data processing system of claim 1,wherein the means for receiving the message is coupled to one or moretransactional data processing systems.
 3. The data processing system ofclaim 1, wherein the means for receiving the message receives theoperational data in an extended mark-up language format.
 4. The dataprocessing system of claim 1, wherein the accounting notificationdetermines a posting specification for the accounting document.
 5. Thedata processing system of claim 1, wherein the first business objectincludes a first semantic key for referencing a source of theoperational data.
 6. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein thesecond business object includes a second semantic key for indicating acompany, a fiscal year, a set of books, or an accounting documentnumber.
 7. The data processing system of claim 1, wherein the processingcomponent creates the accounting document using the accountingnotification and the second business object.
 8. The data processingsystem of claim 7, wherien the processing component generates a datacontainer that carries the accounting document during the processing ofthe accounting document.
 9. A method of generating an accountingdocument, the method comprising: receiving a message carryingoperational data; generating an accounting notification including theoperational data using a first business object; processing theaccounting notification; generating the accounting document using asecond business object, the accounting document including a number ofposting lines corresponding to the operational data; processing theaccounting document; assigning one of a set of third business objects toeach posting line, wherein the set of third business objects includes atleast one general ledger account business object and a plurality ofsub-ledger account business objects; and delegating one or more dataprocessing tasks to be performed for a given posting line to the one ofthe third business objects that are assigned to the given posting line.10. The method of claim 9, wherein the operational data is received froma transactional data processing system.
 11. The method of claim 9,wherein the operational data is received in an extended mark-up languageformat.
 12. The method of claim 9, wherein the operational data isreceived as an XI message.
 13. The method of claim 9, wherein theaccounting notification determining a posting specification for theaccounting document.
 14. The method of claim 9, wherein the firstbusiness object includes a first semantic key for referencing a sourceof the operational data.
 15. The method of claim 9, whein the secondbusiness object includes a second semantic key.
 16. The method of claim9, wherein one of the data processing tasks relates to a valuation, andwherein the one of the data processing tasks is delegated to the one ofthe third business objects that is assigned to a respective postingline.
 17. The method of claim 9, further comprising: storing accountingdocument data without redundancy in a single database.
 18. Acomputer-readable medium storing program instructions executable by aprocessor to perform a method that generates an accounting document, themethod comprising: receiving a message carrying operational data;generating an accounting notification including the operational datausing a first business object; processing the accounting notification;generating the accounting document using a second business object, theaccounting document including a number of posting lines corresponding tothe operational data; processing the accounting document; assigning oneof a set of third business objects to each posting line, wherein the setof third business objects includes at least one general ledger accountbusiness object and a plurality of sub-ledger account business objects;and delegating one or more data processing tasks to be performed for agiven posting line to the one of the third business objects that areassigned to the given posting line.